There are a lot of teams playing Saturday who also played Friday, and while I am not necessarily avoiding any of those situations, it is a useful tie-breaker on tough decisions, and one of the reasons I am content to go bargain hunting at a position like shooting guard rather than take a chance on someone like DeMar DeRozan, Rodney Hood or even Avery Bradley, who I actually like for this slate. Another reason to go cheap at shooting guard is the complete lack of cheap options at power forward. You will have to save money somewhere, and the best places to save are shooting guard, center and point guard.
Point Guard
Tyler Johnson had season-highs in minutes, rebounds and assists Thursday as Goran Dragic went down with an ankle injury. Johnson is averaging 29.9 minutes per game this season, and while that number may not increase a whole lot, he usage should as he assumes more of the point guard duties.
Tomas Satoransky played 32 minutes the last time John Wall sat out, and while he didn’t do a ton with those minutes, he is a punt play with upside, especially on FanDuel and FantasyAces. Bradley Beal has a chance to miss this game as well, in which case Trey Burke would be an excellent GPP play. Burke isn’t very good, especially on the defensive end, but he can score, and the Wizards would likely need that scoring if their starting backcourt is out.
Only the Suns have allowed more points than the Pacers this season, and Marcus Smart has scored at least 12 points in four consecutive games. He provides a nice floor with substantial upside at a pretty modest price.
I don’t usually recommend spending a ton of money on guys facing the Spurs, but James Harden did have a triple-double against them Wednesday. The Rockets haven’t played since, while the Spurs are on the second of a back-to-back.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | ACEPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $FA |
| Tyler Johnson | MIA | H | UTA | 29.9 | 0 | 10 | 101 | 32 | 15 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 49% | 11.17% | 26.1 | 27.6 | 26.4 | 26.8 | $5,000 | $5,600 | $4,100 |
| Trey Burke | WAS | A | CHI | 13.5 | 0 | 3 | 42 | 7 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 51% | 10.80% | 7.7 | 8.4 | 7.8 | 7.9 | $3,600 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
| Marcus Smart | BOS | A | IND | 31.8 | 0 | 11 | 66 | 21 | 20 | 5 | 2 | 10 | 41% | 11.24% | 25 | 27.4 | 25.3 | 26.1 | $4,900 | $5,200 | $4,300 |
| James Harden | HOU | H | SAS | 37.6 | 0 | 26 | 245 | 62 | 104 | 10 | 0 | 45 | 50% | 22.62% | 56.3 | 61.1 | 56.7 | 57.9 | $11,500 | $11,300 | $8,200 |
Shooting Guard
While Tyler Johnson will handle the ball more with Goran Dragic out, Josh Richardson could be the main beneficiary in terms of playing time. Richardson still hasn’t recorded an assist this season, but he did score 16 points Thursday, and his upside is pretty high.
Bradley Beal took a team-high 17 shots with Wall out last week, and Beal is a strong play if he starts. If Wall is out, Marcus Thornton would likely start. Like Trey Burke, Thornton is a capable scorer, and unlike Burke, Thornton would be worth considering in both cash and GPP lineups if Wall and Beal are out.
On Thursday I recommended Gary Harris with Will Barton and Wilson Chandler out, and while that call didn’t work out, it wasn’t Gary Harris’s fault. Harris had 11 points on 5-7 shooting to go with two rebounds and three assists, but he played just 18 minutes as his team was blown out by the Warriors. If Saturday’s game stays close, Harris could have a really nice night.
In his last game, Sean Kilpatrick failed to score in double digits for the first time this season, but he still took nine shots and played 28 minutes. Kilpatrick may have the highest floor of any of the shooting guards mentions so far outside of Bradley Beal.
If the Celtics hadn’t played Friday night, Avery Bradley might be my top shooting guard target of the night. Bradley has four double-doubles this season, including one at Cleveland on the second night of a back-to-back. The Pacers are seventh in opponents’ rebounds and second in opponents’ points, which plays into Bradley’s favor.
I promise I will fade Giannis sooner or later, but with so many cheap options you have to spend money somewhere, and Giannis is one of my favorite expensive targets outside of the forward position. Giannis will almost certainly distribute the ball more after dishing out just three assists total over his last two games, and that makes his ceiling quite high.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | ACEPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $FA |
| Josh Richardson | MIA | H | UTA | 21.7 | 0 | 5 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 36% | 8.11% | 10.4 | 11.8 | 10.5 | 11.2 | $3,600 | $4,100 | $4,000 |
| Tomas Satoransky | WAS | A | CHI | 16.8 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 15 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 42% | 6.97% | 9.1 | 9.5 | 9.2 | 9.1 | $3,500 | $4,300 | $3,300 |
| Bradley Beal | WAS | A | CHI | 31.4 | 0 | 10 | 108 | 15 | 17 | 8 | 6 | 11 | 37% | 12.09% | 24.1 | 25.7 | 24.2 | 24.8 | $5,300 | $5,500 | $4,550 |
| Marcus Thornton | WAS | A | CHI | 19.5 | 0 | 7 | 60 | 21 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 36% | 9.06% | 12.8 | 13.7 | 12.9 | 13.2 | $3,800 | $4,800 | $3,500 |
| Gary Harris | DEN | H | DET | 21.5 | 0 | 4 | 41 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 46% | 12.03% | 17.1 | 18.4 | 17.3 | 17.6 | $4,500 | $4,800 | $4,300 |
| Sean Kilpatrick | BKN | A | PHX | 26.6 | 0 | 13 | 123 | 34 | 20 | 8 | 1 | 21 | 43% | 15.19% | 23.9 | 26.2 | 24.1 | 24.7 | $5,300 | $5,500 | $4,500 |
| Avery Bradley | BOS | A | IND | 36.5 | 0 | 20 | 153 | 65 | 30 | 9 | 3 | 13 | 47% | 12.38% | 35.9 | 38.4 | 36.3 | 37.1 | $6,900 | $7,000 | $5,000 |
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | MIL | H | MEM | 32.9 | 0 | 4 | 165 | 69 | 43 | 14 | 15 | 24 | 50% | 17.49% | 43.3 | 45.5 | 43.7 | 43.5 | $9,400 | $9,100 | $6,950 |
Small Forward
Chandler Parsons is listed as questionable for Saturday, and while he is not playable regardless, James Ennis would be a solid play if Parsons sits.
Pretty much everything I wrote about Gary Harris applies to Danilo Gallinari. Gallinari played a season-low 26 minutes Thursday, but he topped 38 minutes in each of the two games before that.
I admit I have a soft spot for Paul George, but I do not see how the Celtics can match up with him with Jae Crowder out. George is frustrating for DFS because he can be so inconsistent, but he provides really nice value on the nights he is on, and this could be one of those nights.
I mentioned all of the back-to-backs earlier, but one player who shouldn’t show any ill-effects from the back-to-back is Carmelo Anthony. Anthony was ejected after just 12 minutes Friday, and should be fresh against the Raptors.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | ACEPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $FA |
| James Ennis | MEM | A | MIL | 31.4 | 0 | 10 | 85 | 53 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 12 | 48% | 8.93% | 21.1 | 22.9 | 21.5 | 21.8 | $4,400 | $4,600 | $4,250 |
| Danilo Gallinari | DEN | H | DET | 36 | 0 | 17 | 131 | 29 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 39% | 9.54% | 24.9 | 26.7 | 25 | 25.9 | $6,000 | $5,800 | $4,750 |
| Paul George | IND | H | BOS | 34.6 | 0 | 23 | 197 | 60 | 29 | 16 | 4 | 29 | 48% | 15.69% | 35.9 | 39.2 | 36.3 | 37.2 | $8,500 | $7,900 | $6,300 |
| Carmelo Anthony | NYK | A | TOR | 31.3 | 0 | 10 | 171 | 45 | 20 | 7 | 2 | 17 | 47% | 17.54% | 32 | 34 | 32.3 | 32.6 | $7,700 | $7,200 | $6,200 |
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Power Forward
No team has allowed as many points this season as the Suns, but good luck trying to take advantage. Trevor Books is basically as inconsistent as the rest of his teammates, but he has three double-doubles this season, and he is the cheapest power forward I won’t hate myself for playing.
As I mentioned at the top, I intend to pay up at power forward, and it will be awfully tempting to play Paul Millsap in every lineup. The Hawks are rested, the 76ers are not, and only three teams have allowed more fantasy points to opposing power forwards than the 76ers this season.
As much as I like Paul Millsap, he almost certainly won’t score 30+ points with 10+ rebounds, which Anthony Davis has done in four of his nine games this season. If you can afford to pay for Davis I encourage it, especially for GPP lineups.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | ACEPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $FA |
| Paul Millsap | ATL | H | PHI | 32.6 | 0 | 9 | 144 | 66 | 33 | 15 | 4 | 26 | 43% | 15.65% | 35.6 | 38.2 | 36 | 36.2 | $7,800 | $8,000 | $5,700 |
| Trevor Booker | BKN | A | PHX | 26.9 | 0 | 0 | 73 | 72 | 14 | 18 | 6 | 8 | 47% | 8.92% | 27.6 | 28.5 | 28 | 27.6 | $5,400 | $5,400 | $4,300 |
| Anthony Davis | NOP | H | LAL | 37.9 | 0 | 3 | 279 | 99 | 17 | 17 | 28 | 20 | 51% | 20.66% | 54.8 | 56.6 | 55.4 | 55 | $11,600 | $11,500 | $7,650 |
Center
Tyson Chandler has missed two games while dealing with the passing of his mother. Alex Len started both of those games, playing 17 minutes in one and 37 in the other. I don’t quite trust Len, and he is probably overpriced on FanDuel, but at the very least he is a GPP play on the other sites if Chandler is out again.
The Celtics rank fourth in opponents’ points, fifth in opponents’ blocks and second in opponents’ rebounds. Myles Turner hasn’t had a double-double since the second game of the season, but that could change Saturday.
In their last two games, the Knicks have allowed 19 points and seven rebounds to Kelly Olynyk and 21 points to both Brook Lopez and Justin Hamilton, in the same game. Jonas Valanciunas and Lucas Nogueira are both a bit risky because we don’t really know how their minutes will be split in Jonas’s second game back from his knee injury. That being said, they were both solid Friday night, and the Knicks proved against the Nets they are so bad inside they can allow big fantasy production to two opposing centers in the same game.
On the one hand, I want to discount Kelly Olynyk because he is on the second of a back-to-back, and as I mentioned above, his one good game since returning from shoulder surgery came against the Knicks. That being said, the Pacers give up a ton of points, rebounds and threes, and Olynyk is still super cheap.
If you fade Paul Millsap, or you just have to pay up at center, Dwight Howard has the best matchup of any of the top centers. Howard has failed to record a double-double just twice this season.
| PLAYER | TM | H/A | OPP | MPG | FT% | 3PTM | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG% | USAGE | FDPTS/G | DKPTS/G | ACEPTS/G | YPTS/G | $FD | $DK | $FA |
| Alex Len | PHX | H | BKN | 21.1 | 0 | 0 | 77 | 70 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 43% | 10.80% | 21.7 | 22.4 | 22.1 | 21.7 | $5,700 | $4,400 | $4,000 |
| Jonas Valanciunas | TOR | H | NYK | 29.3 | 0 | 0 | 81 | 63 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 53% | 12.49% | 28.5 | 29.8 | 29.1 | 28.5 | $6,100 | $6,400 | $4,950 |
| Lucas Nogueira | TOR | H | NYK | 25.7 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 19 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 86% | 9.63% | 22.6 | 23.4 | 22.9 | 22.6 | $3,700 | $3,800 | $3,000 |
| Kelly Olynyk | BOS | A | IND | 28 | 0 | 3 | 21 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 41% | 9.42% | 20.8 | 22.7 | 21.2 | 21.6 | $3,500 | $3,300 | $3,500 |
| Myles Turner | IND | H | BOS | 27 | 0 | 4 | 135 | 62 | 10 | 7 | 22 | 12 | 55% | 13.74% | 30 | 31.3 | 30.4 | 30.3 | $6,800 | $6,700 | $5,450 |
| Dwight Howard | ATL | H | PHI | 28.8 | 0 | 0 | 127 | 101 | 10 | 10 | 17 | 20 | 62% | 17.66% | 37.2 | 39 | 37.8 | 37.2 | $8,100 | $7,800 | $5,750 |